TradFi | Crypto

Eligible users trade physically settled contracts through Binance while Nest routes orders and Alpaca executes, settles and custodies the shares. The post Binance deepens TradFi push with physically settled options on over 1,000 US equities appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The launch gives eligible non-US users access to physically settled options on more than 1,000 US stocks and ETFs through a single Binance account. Binance is expanding further into traditional finance by launching options trading on more than 1,000 US stocks and exchange-traded funds for eligible users outside the United States. The options will be offered through Binance’s Abu Dhabi-regulated broker-dealer, Nest Trading, with orders routed to US-registered Alpaca Securities for execution, clearing, settlement and custody. The launch builds on Binance’s existing equities offering of more than 7,000 US stocks and ETFs and adds to a growing lineup of traditional financial products available through the platform. Read more

Wintermute will reportedly invest $1 billion in AI infrastructure and high-frequency trading as part of its expansion into traditional finance. Crypto market maker Wintermute reportedly plans to invest up to $1 billion in artificial intelligence (AI) data center infrastructure and high-frequency trading over the next five years. The plans include scaling up Wintermute’s non-crypto market activity to account for over 50% of its business by the end of 2027, up from the current 10%, Wintermute CEO Evgeny Gaevoy told Bloomberg. Wednesday’s report said that as part of the plans, Wintermute will also double the staff in its 17-person New York office next year and expand its global headcount by about 40%. Cointelegraph has approached Wintermute for more details surrounding its expansion plans. Read more

ARK Invest’s director of research disputed a16z crypto’s thesis that traditional finance will adopt permissioned blockchain infrastructure instead of decentralized finance, saying institutions will increasingly rely on DeFi rails. ARK Invest’s director of research pushed back against investor a16z crypto’s thesis that traditional finance will adopt blockchain through permissioned infrastructure rather than decentralized finance (DeFi). Lorenzo Valente said in a Wednesday X post that public blockchains have already outperformed private blockchain initiatives, citing the growth of tokenized assets on Ethereum and other open networks. He added that crypto-native firms such as Circle and Coinbase, rather than incumbent financial institutions, are best positioned to build the next generation of financial infrastructure. Read more

Bitwise’s Matt Hougan says it was “pretty hard to engage with advisers on Bitcoin” during recent discussions, who are more interested in stablecoins and tokenization. Advisers to some of the largest financial institutions are taking more of an interest in stablecoins and tokenization than in Bitcoin, which could help pull crypto out of its current slump, said Bitwise investment chief Matt Hougan. Hougan said in a note on Wednesday that he recently spoke with more than 40 advisers who were “still interested in crypto” but are “more interested today in stablecoins and tokenization than they are in Bitcoin.” “It was pretty hard to engage with advisors on Bitcoin this week,” he said. “In call after call, they expressed much more curiosity over the real-world applications of crypto that are quickly reshaping everything from capital markets to global payments.” Read more

Gate’s CBO argues that Bloomberg’s warning of a TradFi takeover is "oversimplified," noting that global exchanges evolved past fee-only models years ago.

Binance will shift to an orderbook-weighted pricing model for commodity perpetual futures during off-hours, potentially changing margin and liquidation behavior. Binance will change how it calculates benchmark prices for commodity-based perpetual futures during off-hours, a move that could affect margin and liquidation levels during weekends, holidays and maintenance periods, according to an exchange notice published Tuesday. The update will take effect on Friday at 9:00 pm UTC. The exchange will replace its current fixed pricing method with an Orderbook EWMA model for commodity-based traditional finance (TradFi) perpetual contracts. EWMA, or exponential weighted moving average, uses orderbook data that is smoothed over time rather than relying on a fixed reference price during periods of lower activity. Binance said the change will apply during daily maintenance windows as well as weekends and holidays, when trading activity is typically reduced. Read more

With $114 trillion in custodied liquid assets, Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation looks to position tokenization as future of existing financial system. The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) plans to pilot trading of tokenized securities in July with a goal of a full service launch in October. The post-trade market infrastructure giant said Monday that more than 50 TradFi and DeFi firms will play a role in the design and deployment of the service. That DTCC Industry Working Group includes Alpaca, Anchorage Digital, BitGo Bank & Trust, BlackRock, Circle and Fireblocks, along with some of the biggest banks in the country. Source: DTCC Read more

I believe the hardest question for DeFi in 2026 is whether the original dream is still alive. The collective bargain was simple. Users would hold their own keys. Code would execute the rules. Markets would stay open. Ledgers would be visible. Intermediaries would lose power because financial services could run on public smart contracts rather […] The post Yearly DeFi hacks cost 8,500% more than TradFi breaches per dollar moved appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The S&P 500 closed at 7,126 on April 17, another record, while the University of Michigan’s preliminary April consumer sentiment reading fell to 47.6, the weakest print in the survey’s history. The split on the screen looks surreal. Charlie Bilello shared the chart below, highlighting the gap. Wall Street is trading at altitude. Households are […] The post What Happens to Bitcoin if the TradFi rally breaks? Wall Street keeps printing record highs but consumer confidence just hit rock bottom appeared first on CryptoSlate.

Crypto exchanges are seeking market share of TradFi trading venues, but tokenized commodities adoption is limited by pricing and liquidity concerns. Update April 9, 2026, 1:00 p.m. UTC: This article has been updated to include a comment from Mamadou Kwidjim Toure, CEO and founder of tokenization platform Ubuntu Tribe. Cryptocurrency exchanges are taking market share from traditional finance (TradFi) trading venues through tokenized commodities products, but finding that mainstream adoption of tokenized precious metals is limited by pricing and liquidity issues. Silver perpetuals have peaked at about 40% of the equivalent volume of the Comex Silver (SI) Contract, the world’s largest silver futures market that accounts for over 70% of global exchange-traded silver futures volume, according to a Thursday report from Binance Research. Read more

Bitcoin mass adoption by institutional investors has resumed, but global instability and the risk of rising US inflation put a lid on BTC’s breakouts above $70,000. Bitcoin’s (BTC) consolidation continued into Thursday as bulls struggled to keep hold of $70,000, and competing narratives on BTC’s market structure versus its increasing institutional adoption clashed with the bearish overarching factors negatively impacting US equity markets.  Citing Bernstein’s $150,000 by the end of 2026 price estimate, Bloomberg analysts said that data shows institutional investors returning to the Bitcoin markets in droves, reinforcing the view that BTC had “reached a floor.”    In early March, a week-long stretch of inflows to the spot Bitcoin ETFs nearly topped $1 billion, while Strategy purchased 22,237 BTC for $1.6 billion through its new perpetual preferred equity, Stretch (STRC). In addition to the success of STRC, Strategy also unveiled plans to raise capital to buy $44.1 billion in additional Bitcoin.  Read more

Author and personal finance educator Robert Kiyosaki says Bitcoin is going to $750,000, but there's a catch. Key takeaways: Robert Kiyosaki’s $750,000 Bitcoin target implies a 95% discount versus gold, which is lower than the 2024 peak. $750,000 Bitcoin might not be that significant if daily expenses, housing and energy rise in like kind. Read more

Ethereum’s dominant total value locked and widespread adoption by traditional finance institutions confirm its role as the base of global onchain finance. Will Ether price follow? Key takeaways: Institutional adoption of the Ethereum network accelerates despite Ether disappointing price action. Ethereum and its layer-2s hold 65% of TVL market share. Vitalik Buterin is shifting focus toward base layer scalability and ZK-EVM to ensure long-term onchain efficiency and security. Read more

Bitwise's February announcement arrived as two moves packaged as one. The crypto asset manager announced a partnership with Morpho to launch curated yield vaults and simultaneously acquired Chorus One's institutional staking business. It looks like a deliberate assembly: curation mechanisms to filter protocol risk, infrastructure to deliver returns, and enough operational scaffolding to make the […] The post TradFi is selling crypto income on Wall Street but a hidden switch decides who gets in appeared first on CryptoSlate.

The $940 billion asset manager will collaborate on DeFi lending infrastructure and could acquire up to 90 million MORPHO tokens.  Traditional finance giant Apollo Global Management Inc. has signed a partnership agreement with decentralized lending platform Morpho to take a significant stake in the project and help support its blockchain lending infrastructure.  The move was announced on Friday by the Morpho Association, the nonprofit organization behind the decentralized finance (DeFi) platform.  The partnership, or “cooperation agreement,” will see Apollo or its affiliates buy up to 90 million Morpho (MORPHO) governance tokens over the next four years, representing 9% of the total 1 billion-token supply of MORPHO.  Read more

Bitcoin open interest falls to $34 billion as investor demand dries up and traders’ concerns shift to worrying US macroeconomic data. Is TradFi exiting BTC? Key takeaways: BTC open interest falls to $34 billion, but stable BTC-denominated volume suggests leverage demand remains unchanged. Weak US jobs data and Bitcoin options skew indicate a bearish shift, even as gold and stocks show relative strength. Read more

Fiserv launches a 24/7/365 settlement platform for digital asset companies, aiming to reduce banking friction and improve liquidity in the US dollar. Fiserv, a major US payments and financial technology provider, has launched a new cash settlement platform for digital asset companies, a move that could strengthen fiat infrastructure for crypto players and improve access to liquidity. On Thursday, Fiserv announced the debut of INDX, a real-time cash settlement system that operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The platform allows digital asset companies to move US dollars instantly using a single custodial account, potentially improving how exchanges, trading desks and other crypto businesses manage fiat balances. INDX will be made available to more than 1,100 insured financial institutions participating in the Fiserv Deposit Network. The account structure provides up to $25 million in Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) coverage, according to the company. Read more

The crypto market’s volatility is just “part of the game,” says Federal Reserve governor Chris Waller, who adds that traditional finance may have added to the recent market drop. Federal Reserve governor Chris Waller says the crypto hype that accompanied US President Donald Trump’s election victory has begun to wane as the market has become more entwined with traditional finance. “I think some of the euphoria that came into the crypto world with the current administration, some of that's kind of fading,” Waller said at a conference on Monday. “A lot of it has been brought into the mainstream finance,” Waller said. “Then, you know, things have to happen there, so I think there was a lot of sell-off just because firms that got into it from mainstream finance had to adjust their risk positions.” Read more

Bitcoin’s price, and thus the entire crypto market, is increasingly being anchored by flows through regulated wrappers. Crypto is increasingly being subsumed by TradFi rather than offering an alternative to the broken system Satoshi criticized. U.S. spot ETF subscriptions and redemptions are now posting day-to-day swings that increasingly dominate the daily narrative tape. In practice, […] The post How crypto is being devoured by TradFi, killing Satoshi’s dream by rewarding centralization appeared first on CryptoSlate.